Give It Up For GIVIN

This photo is nothing short of amazing. Sure the ambient lighting is cool... the guy on the balcony looks stoked... and there are a shit ton of people standing outside waiting to see "One". But all that aside, leaning on the back of that there truck is Scotty mother-fuckin Wittlake.

Words: Laura Austin
Photos: Mike Yoshida

Givin premiered their debut movie “One” to a packed theater full of a colorful, diverse, and at times loud… maybe too loud crowd in Laguna Beach on September 16th. Snowboard legends, industry staples, drunkards, potheads, parents, and everything in between came out for the occasion. After seeing the web edits they produced and simply knowing the crew involved in the movie I think everyone was anxious to see how the brainchild of Keegan Valaika, filmer Aaron Hooper, and Gnarly’s Jon Francis turned out.

The man of the hour, Keegan Valaika. And a little kid in the background who looks like he has never seen an Asian before.

The movie kicked off with Forest Bailey. Some love his riding, some hate it… but his unique style and creativity is undeniable and his opener was proof. His part was littered with a crazy number of rail to wallrides, a boardslide on a 5-knobbed rail (as seen in this episode of Crewzin’), some surprise backcountry footage, and ended with a burly 360 to a blind high-profile down ledge in Minnesota. Next was Shayne Pospisil with a segment that definitely made an impression. His part, like most in the movie had a laid back vibe with predominately backcountry footage. His smooth style shined with highlights that included and massive air on a hip and ending with a big ol’ double cork. Canadian Brendan Keegan and Australian Robbie Walker shared a section made up of more pow laced footage. Jonas Michilot’s offering was short but sweet and filled with style which included some half naked shredding and a Danimals cameo. Doran Laybourn a.k.a D-Tale came out with some solid and smooth pow footage with cameos featuring Cody Rosenthal and Mason Aguirre. Up next was a shared section featuring two riders I frankly don’t know too much about, but was impressed with… Benny Urban and Bozwreck Alumni, Timmy Ronan. They both came out with some solid jib trickery.

No caption is worthy of a photo featuring Caked Dave.

The last few parts were probably the most entertaining. Nick Russell laid down a loose part full of balls out bangers showing that he could step up to heavy big mountain lines, tight tree runs, backcountry booters, and road gaps. Keegan Valaika always makes things look incredibly easy with his laid-back approach. He proved that not only can he ride rails but he can also hold his own off the piste. Other highlights included huge gaps to rails… it seemed like it was a goal to break your board this season… and ended with and insane triple-kink into an elbow.

Of course it was crowded outside of the theater. Wouldn't you show up if you knew that a "Moneyball" was coming soon?

Wyatt Stasinos definitely was the standout of “One”. His onslaught started out with the avalanche that dealt him with a broken femur. Regardless of this close call mid-season he had already racked up enough hammers for a two-song ender. The first half featured an incredible amount of pillow line shots, charging through with ease and in some cases spinning midway through. A healthy amount of freeride lines and technical tree runs were also mixed in. Just when you thought the movie was over his second song kicked in with which was predominately jumps. Keep an eye out for this kid; he is silent but deadly.

Yes. That is a mustache hanging from Mason Aguirre's neck. We will let you make your own conclusions.

It’s a dream for any pro rider to branch off and helm their own movie, inviting their homies to be apart of it, and having creative control. Keegan and company did great for their first effort creating a product by snowboarders, for snowboarders. Overall “One” had a pretty mellow vibe to it, which makes sense coming from this crew. Hopefully these guys won’t stop at “One” and keep on givin’ with more films in the future.